Hydrodynamic generator



Sept. 9, 1969 TRAVENEC 3,465,710

HYDRODYNAMIC GENERATOR Filed Feb. 7, 1967 j a I 2 'IIIIIIIIIIII/ INVENTOR. 0 0/ Wau-e nec. BY

ww n/ United States Patent U.S. Cl. 116-137 7 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A hydrodynamic generator having an elongated hollow resonance tube which is closed at one end and open at its opposite end and which is formed between these ends with at least one resonance aperture passing through a wall portion of the tube. A hollow frustoconical attachment has opposed large and small ends and is removably connected at its small end to the open end of the tube. This attachment is open at its small end and closed at its large end by a closure wall. This latter wall carries an equalizmg valve which communicates with the interior of the hollow attachment, and this wall also carries a hollow cylindrical projection which extends from the latter wall mm the interior of the hollow attachment coaxially with the resonance tube. A feed conduit feeds tangentially into the lnterior of the hollow attachment in the region of its large end, communicating with the space which surrounds the cylindrical projection, so that a fluid, such as suitable llquid, can be introduced tangentially into the hollow frustoconical attachment at its large end to form a rotatmg body of liquid which moves from the interior of the attachment into the resonance tube to impinge on the resonance aperture thereof.

The invention relates in particular to a hydrodynamic generator for producing sonic and ultrasonic oscillations. Sonic and ultrasonic energy are now used on a relatively large scale in order to speed up certain production processes. One of the sources of such energy is formed by hydrodynamic generators the principle of which is based upon the so called hydrodynamic effect. This effect is achieved by a current of a liquid, such as water, emerging from a nozzle at high speed and impinging on the sharp edge of a vibrator, so as to produce eddies having an excess pressure in a lower part of the structure, these eddies being formed around the edge of the vibrator. The successrve eddies give rise to alternating pressure reductions having the nature of sonic or ultrasonic waves. In order for hydrodynamic generators of this construction to operate properly on this latter principle, it is essential that the nozzles be relatively narrow, so that they frequently become clogged during operation.

With vibrators of hydrodynamic generators of this type, whether the vibrators are blade-shaped, cylindrical, or conical, it is essential that the vibrators be provided with a sharp edge to be initially contacted by the liquid jet and this edge of the blade is frequently blunted. Hydrodynamrc generators operate primarily at frequencies of 1 kc., so that the material of which the vibrators are made frequently suffer from fatigue, leading to rapid destruction thereof and necessitating frequent removal and replacement thereof.

All of the above drawbacks prevent the uninterrupted continuous operation of the known hydrodynamic generators and cause frequent breakdowns. Furthermore, relatrvely viscous liquids or liquids which contain relatively large amounts of impurities cannot be used with such generators.

It is a primary object of the present invention to pfovide a hydrodynamic generator which will avoid the above mentioned drawbacks.

In particular, it is an object of the present invention to provide a hydrodynamic generator which is of an exceedingly simple and inexpensive construction, capable of being easily manufactured .at a cost which is much lower than the conventional hydrodynamic generators.

In particular, it is an object of the present invention to provide a hydrodynamic generator which will enable a vibrator to be completely eliminated, and it is a further object of the invention to provide a hydrodynamic generator which will eliminate the necessity of a nozzle, so that the primary sources of frequent breakdowns will be eliminated with the generator of the invention and furthermore it will become possible to use relatively viscous fluids and even fluids which are highly contaminated.

In addition, it is an object of the present invention to provide a hydrodynamic generator the components of which can easily be separated from each other so that the generator of the invention can be cleaned without difficulty.

The hydrodynamic generator of the invention includes an elongated hollow resonance tube having a closed end and an opposed open end and formed between these ends with at least one reasonance aperture which extends through a wall portion of the resonance tube. At its open end the resonance tube of the invention is detchably connected with a hollow frustoconical attachment having opposed large and small ends and communicating at its open small end with the open end of the resonance tube. The large end of the frustoconical attachment of the invention is closed by a suitable wall which carries an equalizing valve which communicates with the interior of the frustoconical attachment. This latter wall also carries a hollow cylindrical projection which is coaxial with the resonance tube and which projects from the wall at the large end of the frustoconical attachment into the interior of the latter. A feed conduit communicates tangentially with the hollow interior of the frustoconical attachment at the region of its large end, this feed conduit communicating with the space which surrounds the hollow cylindrical projection, so that through this feed conduit fluid can be introduced to assume a rotary motion within the frustoconical attachment, flowing therefrom into the resonance tube and impinging on the aperture thereof to provide the required oscillations.

The invention is illustrated, by way of example, in the accompanying drawings which form part of this application and in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective illustration of one possible embodiment of a hydrodynamic generator according to the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an elevation of the structure of FIG. 1, showing in longitudinal section the resonance tube and region of the frustoconical attachment attached thereto; and

FIG. 3 a top plan view of the structure of FIG. 2 fragmentarily illustrating in horizontal section the connection of a feed conduit with the interior of the frustoconical attachment.

The hydrodynamic generator of the invention which is illustrated in the drawings includes an elongated hollow resonance tube 1 which is formed between its ends with at least one resonance aperture 2. In the illustrated example the resonance tube 1 is formed with a plurality of resonance apertures longitudinally distributed along the tube 1 between its ends, and all except the resonance .aperture 2 which is used are selectively closed by plugs 3 in the form of threaded bolts which are threaded into the non-used resonance apertures so as to close the latter. At any given time only one resonance aperture will be open.

The resonance tube 1 of the invention has a closed end and an opposed open end, and in the illustrated example the closed end of the resonance tube is provided by way of a closure member 4 in the form of a detachable cover which is threaded onto the bottom end of the tube 1, as indicated in FIG. 2, so as to fluid-tightly close the bottom end of the tube 1.

The upper orifice or open end of the tube 1 communicates with the hollow interior of a frustoconical attachment or fluid-circulating vessel 5 with which the resonance tube 1 is detachably connected as by being threaded at its top end into a suitable threaded bore situated at the bottom permanently open end of the frustoconical attachment 5. It will be noted that this attachment has opposed large and small ends and it is the open small end of the attachment 5 with which the permanently open end of the resonance tube 1 communicates.

The frustoconical attachment 5 is fluid-tightly sealed at its larger end by a suitable covering wall 6. This wall 6 carries an equalizing valve 7 which may be set by the operator to provide a predetermined cross section of flow from the interior of the attachment 5 through the valve 7.

Furthermore, the cover 6 carries in its interior a hollow cylindrical projection 8 which is coxial with the tube 1, and which is fixed at its upper end, as viewed in FIG. 2, to the inner surface of the wall 6, the valve 7 communicating through the hollow cylindrical projection or tube 8 with the interior of the frustoconical attachment 5. Thus, the projection 8 extends downwardly from the closure wall 6 along the common axis of the attachment 5 and resonance tube 1 toward the latter through the relatively short distance which is apparent from FIG. 2.

A lateral feed conduit 9 leads tangentially into the interior of the hollow attachment 5, as indicated in FIG. 3, communicating with the large end thereof and with the space therein which surrounds the cylindrical projection 8.

As is apparent from the drawings, any suitable flexible tube, hose, or the like, can be connected with the feed conduit 9 so as to supply a suitable fluid, such as a suitable liquid, thereto to be tangentially fed into the interior of the hollow attachment 5 at the large end thereof just beneath the closure wall or cover 6. Also, a suitable flexi ble tube, hose or the like can be attached to the outlet end of the valve 7, as is particularly apparent from the top end of FIG. 2.

The liquid which is to be used is driven through the tangential feed conduit 9 at a pressure of at least 5 atmospheres into the hollow interior of the frustoconical attachment 5 where the liquid attains the necessary speed of movement and forms a rotary body. The commencement of the rotation of the body of liquid is assisted by the hollow cylindrical projection 8. As a result of the impact of the rotating body of liquid on the edge of the resonance aperture 2, the column of liquid is caused to oscillate, thus forming a source of sonic or ultrasonic waves. The liquid flows away through the resonance aperture 2.

The equalizing valve 7 serves in part for any necessary pressure compensation inside the hollow interior of the apparatus and in part for removal of liquid components of dififerent weight. The length of the resonance tube 1 .and the distance of the resonance apertures 2 from the mouth or upper orifice of the resonance tube 1 controls the operating frequency of the hydrodynamic generator. While in the illustrated example the bottom end of the tube 1 is shown as being sealed by a detachable cover 4, such a detachable cover is not indispensable for proper operation of the hydrodynamic generator. However, a detachable cover 4 is preferred, and in addition it is preferred to provide the detachable connection between the tube 1 and the frustoconical attachment 5 as well as a detachable connection of the cover wall 6 to the large end of the frustoconical attachment 5, so that in this way the structure of the invention can be easily disassembled for cleaning purposes and then can be readily re-assembled so as to again be set into operation.

I claim:

1. In a hydrodynamic generator, an elongated hollow resonance tube having a closed end and an opposed open end and being formed between said ends with at least one resonance aperture passing through a wall portion of said resonance tube, a hollow frustoconical fluid-circulating vessel having opposed large and small ends, said vessel being connected at its small end to said open end of said resonance tube and communicating through said small end with the interior of said resonance tube, said vessel including a wall closing said large end of said vessel, and a feed conduit communicating tangentially with the interior of said vessel in the region of said large end thereof and feeding tangentially into the interior of said vessel so that fluid introduced into the latter rotates therein and in said resonance tube, impinging on said resonance aperture and discharging out through the latter.

2. The combination of claim 1 and wherein said resonance tube carries at said closed end thereof a detachable cover which closes said tube.

3. The combination of claim 1 and wherein said tube is detachably connected with said vessel.

4. The combination of claim 1 and wherein said wall which closes said large end of said frustoconical vessel carries an equalizing valve communicating with the interior of said conical vessel.

5. The combination of claim 1 and wherein said wall which closes said large end of said frustoconical vessel fixedly carries a hollow cylindrical tube which extends from said wall into the interior of said hollow vessel, said cylindrical tube being coaxial with said resonance tube.

6. The combination of claim 1 and wherein said resonance tube is formed with a plurality of resonance apertures longitudinally distributed along said tube and said tube carrying plugs which removably close all except one of said apertures.

7. The combination of claim land wherein an equalizing valve is carried by said wall which closes said large end of said frustoconical vessel and communicates through said wall with the interior of said vessel, said wall .also carrying in the interior of said vessel a hollow cylindrical tube which is coaxial with said resonance tube.

References Cited FOREIGN PATENTS 148,307 10/1931 Switzerland.

LOUIS J. CAPOZI, Primary Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 

